After a big away win against the underdog SuperSonics, Mark was full of confidence and regained his energy in the locker room.
After a day of rest, we came to the away game Portland Trail Blazers.
Li Tian came to the Grizzlies through a trade with the Grizzlies. He doesn't have any resentment towards the Blazers for trading him away. Instead, he is more grateful that he was able to get a formal NBA contract, otherwise he might have lost his job. I'm going to participate in this year's summer league, and I'm not sure whether I'll get a chance to play.
In Portland, I had a brief gathering with Tao Lin Green at noon. Green had not yet gained the trust of the head coach and could only train in the training hall every day without getting a chance to play. Tao Lin Green was also a little confused. .
The Grizzlies and Trail Blazers are close friends at the beginning of the new season. The Grizzlies have 1 win and 2 losses, while the Trail Blazers have 1 win and 3 losses. The performance of the two teams can be said to be heading towards the lottery pick at the beginning of the game.
They are all weak teams that struggle to win. The Blazers' new No. 1 pick will be reimbursed for the season. The Blazers' revival will have to be postponed for another year. No one knows what next year will be like.
After winning against the Sonics, Mark attributed the victory to his correct arrangements. Without his own strategizing, how could he have achieved such a hearty victory?
"Guys, we can win. You have to believe in yourself. Entering the playoffs in the new season is our only goal. This is our only purpose. We will never fail. Do you understand?" Mark Generous and passionate speech.
"Come on, Grizzlies." After winning the game, everyone was happy and happy to shout for the head coach.
"In order to enrich the team's offense, we are going to try new tactical arrangements for this game." Mark suddenly said that there was a change in tactics.
The players looked at each other in confusion. What on earth is this head coach going to do? He only won one game and then started trouble again. We have new tactics. We don't even practice them in training. How can we fight?
At this time, Gasol began to think about leaving the Grizzlies. This year's coach made him lose confidence and patience in the team.
I was sorting out the equipment for the evening game alone, and did not listen to the new tactics arranged by the coach.
Recalling his career, "Since landing in the NBA in 2001, Gasol paid US$1.65 million in compensation out of his own pocket, left Barcelona, joined the Grizzlies, and began to accompany the Grizzlies who moved to Memphis.
In 6 years, Gasol has gone from being a young boy with flowing blond hair to reaching his peak. But the current Grizzlies team makes him feel strange. He is already an All-Star power forward, but he has started to act as a foil for others. And this man was just a second-year rookie, and Gasol didn't understand it.
But we must always start thinking about the next path, come to the NBA with dreams in mind, and help the team set records again and again, but now there are signs of being abandoned."
Seeing Gasol's loss, he walked forward, patted Gasol on the shoulder, and comforted this big brother. The two established a deep friendship during the preseason.
The Grizzlies, who had just won the victory, were once again cast into a shadow. The players did not know where to go. There was no stable tactics and rotation. Each player did not know whether he would have a chance to play in the next game. Different tactical arrangements required The players are also different.
At the beginning of the first quarter of the game, Gasol got everything he wanted in the paint. He made 5 of 6 shots in the paint and 1 of 2 free throws, scoring a game-high 11 points.
Li Tian and Conley didn't even have a minute of playing time in the first quarter.
Mark allowed the starting players to play almost the entire first quarter without considering Gasol's health at all. He was a player who suffered serious injuries last season.
It wasn't until the score between the two teams reached 10 points in the second quarter that Li Tian and Conley were scheduled to play at the same time.
"Conley, we can't let the coach arrange it. We have to play our own ball and go to the head coach." Li Tian said in Conley's ear. Now he only has three-point ability. He has good footwork at the basket but not good layups. He hits the ball. The rate is relatively low, not as good as the outside three-point shooting rate.
"Okay, man, let's enjoy the game." Conley clapped his hands to cheer himself. He also had different views on the coach's arrangements.
Gasol continued to score inside, and the Blazers could only compress the defense and compress the defense to the inside to prevent Gasol from scoring continuously.
"Man, let's knock them out." Gasol joined their small group.
Conley came on the court and reorganized the Grizzlies' offense.
Gasol sits inside and helps his teammates initiate pick-and-rolls at any time.
Li Tian kept running on the wing, and through continuous movement changes, he got rid of Aldridge and came to the three-point line, getting an open opportunity.
Conley quickly passed the ball to Li Tian.
Lived up to expectations and hit a three-point shot.
After hitting the three-pointer, he was kicked hard by the Blazers who were already standing on the edge of the abyss.
With the perfect cooperation of Li Tian, Gasol and Conley, they quickly launched a wave of attacks.
Li Tian's defense caused Aldridge's shooting percentage to hit rock bottom, making 1 of 5 shots; Roy, the 'Yellow Mamba', felt cold and was also locked up by Conley, making 0 of 3 shots in the second quarter.
At the end of the first half, in the second half of the second quarter, the Grizzlies, who launched a wave of attacks, led 66-49 by 17 points.
It gives people the illusion that the Grizzlies are about to reach their peak. They are facing the team that picked last year's No. 1 pick, and now the No. 1 pick is out for the season and cannot appear.
At halftime, there was laughter in the locker room. We were leading by so much at halftime, and victory was within our grasp.
"Paul, what are you doing? Why don't you listen to my arrangements? Why don't you follow my tactical arrangements? What do you want to do?" Mark shouted at the top of his lungs, thinking that as long as his voice was louder, he could overwhelm everything. What he didn't understand was that he He is just a rookie coach and has not gained the trust of his players.
"Coach, I didn't follow your tactical arrangements, but we are ahead, right? We want to win?" Gasol could no longer bear Mark's dissatisfaction.
"Leading? What's the use of leading? What I want is my tactics, and you have to abide by my tactical arrangements. Do you know that? Anyone who doesn't accept my arrangements will be benched." Mark angrily threw it away. One sentence.
Mark didn't listen to Gasol's explanation at all.
Gasol was helpless. Isn't winning the team's only goal? How can we reach the playoffs if we don't win?
"Li, you won't have time to play in the second half." Mark can't do anything with Gasol, but he can still do whatever he wants with the rookie Li Tian.
"Why?" Li Tian also exploded. He had experienced knee injuries and was underestimated. Now he had the opportunity to express himself, but he was deprived of it by Mark in an instant.
"Why, you have the nerve to ask me why, I am the head coach. I said before the start of the game that if you don't listen to my arrangements, you will be on the bench." Mark didn't care about Li Tian.
Just as he was about to continue to stand up and retort, Conley beside him was pulled aside. Gasol also shook his head and signaled Li Tian to stop talking.
Mark, who is full of self-confidence, will never allow anyone to question his decision at this moment.
In the second half, without Li Tian's control on the outside, Gasol was even under the crazy double-teaming of the Trail Blazers inside and failed to score a single point.
Rudy Gay was like a runaway wild horse, constantly attacking the inside. The Trail Blazers took advantage of this and kept letting Gay attack their own inside, while other Grizzlies players could only watch Gay from the outside. heroic performance.
The Trail Blazers successfully used Gay to defend the entire Grizzlies team, with one person holding the ball and four people watching.
Aldridge scored 17 points in the second half, Brandon Roy scored 18 points, and a cavalryman on the bench, Jarrett Jack, also scored 16 points. The three scored 51 points together, which was better than the Grizzlies. The entire second half was much more.
The final result can be imagined. The Grizzlies led the Trail Blazers by 17 points in the first half. In the second half, the entire Grizzlies team had Gay's crazy attack on the Trail Blazers' basket, and their scoring efficiency dropped rapidly. On the other hand, the Trail Blazers, under the leadership of Roy, only It took half the game to kill the Grizzlies' hopes of victory.
Challenging the Jazz again on the road, the Grizzlies were slaughtered again.
The Grizzlies were slaughtered by the Jazz by 24 points 94-118, another two-game losing streak.
Li Tian still had no chance to appear in this game and sat on the bench.
Seeing the team's failure, Li Tian didn't know what to do. He was pinned down on the bench by the coach and could only cover his eyes with a towel.
In the Jazz's away locker room, the Grizzlies players looked like deflated balls.
Gasol threw the towel to the ground and shouted, "What kind of bullshit tactic is this?" to express his dissatisfaction with Mark's tactical arrangement.
Desiring to win, he absolutely could not accept such a result. Failure after failure made Gasol completely disappointed with this new coach.
Seeing Gasol's anger, Li Tian finally understood why Gasol was eventually sent to Los Angeles, because like that man, he also wanted to win.
The Grizzlies management couldn't sit still. Looking at the team's record, they were completely angry. Now Gasol is healthy and healthy. The team also has talented rookie players like Gay and Conley, with 1 win and 4 losses. The results are absolutely unacceptable.
Mark, who returned to Memphis, was also invited to the management office by the management and had a long talk.
The management kept complaining about Mark, expressing that regarding the team's record, if the team wants to make money, it needs to increase attendance and attract more sponsors, so that it can turn losses into profits. Otherwise, the team will keep losing money, and eventually the team will lose money. The ending can be imagined.
The Grizzlies watched the Milwaukee Bucks select Yi Jianlian. The large amount of team sponsorships and rising attendance made the Grizzlies jealous.
The Grizzlies chose Li Tian for the same purpose as the Bucks. They are both Chinese players. Li Tian was once a talented player. After experiencing a knee injury, they had the opportunity to select Li Tian in the second round through trade.
One of the purposes of choosing Li Tian is to attract Chinese fans, which will increase sponsors. Yao Ming's success has made many teams covetous, but they are worried that Li Tian's knee injury will ruin his career again.
The pressure from the management has caused Mark to reposition himself again. He has signed a contract. If his performance is not good, he will be fired at any time. His low position is not stable.